Friday, June 16, 2017

Silent Rescue - Melinda di Lorenzo (HRS #1950 - June 2017)

To find her daughter, she must trust a handsome stranger

Since her brother's tragic death, Maryse LePrieur has been in hiding. Left to care for her niece as her own, Maryse heeded his cryptic wish: that they run fast…and far. But Maryse discovers far wasn't quite far enough when she wakes up one morning to find her beloved daughter missing. Frantic, she enlists the assistance of an unexpected ally…

When he spots a beautiful woman being forced through the streets at gunpoint, Detective Brooks Small acts quickly. But helping Maryse brings passions and unexpected connections to the surface and elevates this mission from professional to personal. Brooks soon realizes love between mother and daughter isn't the only kind of relationship at stake.

Terrific book, had me hooked from the first page to the last. Family was everything to Maryse, and taking care of her younger brother and the trouble he got into was what she did. The last thing she expected was to find a newborn girl on her doorstep and instructions from him to run as far and as fast as she can. Years later, she has found a home and a little bit of security in a small town in Canada. Until she wakes up one morning to find Cami missing. One small clue and she's off on her own, trying to find her daughter and get her back.

Brooks has been banished on a forced vacation to Canada after he gets into trouble during his investigation into a Vegas criminal. He's not happy being away from the action, and even less happy being stuck in the frozen north. When he spots Maryse being forced down the street at gunpoint, he can't help but jump in to save her. Her fear and determination touch him and he promises to help her find Cami.

It's a real rollercoaster ride as each new clue adds a piece to the puzzle. Every time they think they are getting close, it seems the bad guys are either a step ahead of them or right on their heels. There are shootings, car chases (and an interesting game of "chicken") and fires. Along the way, Brooks discovers that there's an unexpected connection between Cami's disappearance and his investigation. Things got even more intense when the action moved from Canada back to Las Vegas. There are a couple of great scenes with Brooks' partner and his captain as the action ramps up. The final confrontation is really intense, with a couple interesting twists. Even in the midst of the danger, there are some sweet moments between Maryse, Cami and Brooks.

I enjoyed the development of the relationship between Brooks and Maryse. She's very wary of him at first because she has spent so long not trusting anyone. It doesn't take too long for her to realize that she can believe in him. Brooks felt a connection to Maryse from the first moment he saw her. He briefly fought his need to help her, knowing he shouldn't get involved, but that didn't last long. I loved his patience with her fears and his ability to keep calm when things got crazy. It was sweet to see how quickly he started thinking of being a family with Maryse and Cami. The attraction between them was very strong also, which increased the depth of their connection. I loved seeing Maryse open up her heart to him. The ending scene in the helicopter was sweet and romantic.

The title of Silent Rescue is especially appropriate. Cami's deafness and the use of sign language throughout the story was an unusual occurrence. I loved how Brooks and Maryse regularly mixed their speech and sign language.

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